In this week’s photo selection, we’re taking a close look at the gigantic freshwater fish that’s a prized catch for Brazilian fishing communities of the Amazon River.

“Measuring 10 feet (3 meters) long and weighing in at more than 400 pounds (180 kilograms), it’s hard to imagine that the arapaima, the largest fish in the Amazon River basin, could ever go missing. But these huge fish are quickly disappearing from Brazilian waterways, according to a new study.” – excerpt from Amazon’s Biggest Fish Faces Threat of Extinction on Yahoo News.

“The Pira-rucd. Pii-a-rucii, Payshi, or Anatto {Arapaima gigas), the Cod-fish of the Amazons, is the universal diet on the river, and, after rubber and cacao, the most important article of trade.” – Internet Archive Book Images

“The arapaima, pirarucu, or paiche is a genus of bonytongue native to the Amazon and Essequibo basins in South America. They are the largest freshwater fish of South America, and among the largest freshwater fish in the world.” – Abd Khabir Mohd Ali

To join this series, tweet @flickr with your favorite wildlife photos, and include the hashtag #WildlifeWednesday. And if you’d rather not tweet, simply include the same hashtag in your Flickr photo title, or tag it with WildlifeWednesday.

We look forward to seeing your contributions and featuring a new selection of your photo submissions every Wednesday here on our blog.

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